Shyam Bhatia, second from left, at the launch of his book, 'The Quiet Correspondent'
Subir Roy
Published: Aug. 10, 2026
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THIS is the story of how an accomplished peripatetic newspaper correspondent journeys to the most troubled region of the world and unearths exclusive stories. And those stories become information for intelligence agencies. The correspondent inadvertently becomes a spy for his minders and delivers what they are looking for.
Within this the correspondent develops a tender romantic relationship which ends for him with an unbearable tragedy. Thus the novel can be read at three levels: high-quality journalism, powerful cloak and dagger stuff, and a human story.
The publisher’s blurb says that the book is about the protagonist, Amol Batty, part-Indian and British-educated, who is a reporter with a conscience, uncovering the secret dealings of governments. This takes him from London to Beirut, Jerusalem and the Balkans. Batty is torn between loyalty and integrity. At the end of the day he has to decide if the story should remain paramount or serve the cloak and dagger machinations of the political powers whom he has chosen to serve.
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